Comet over Stonehenge

Posted on July 21, 2020 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Good Evening, God

Ah, an image of a comet that only comes into view every 6,000 years or so, and Stonehenge which began to be created maybe 7,000 years ago. Apparently, the Salisbury Plain was considered to be a sacred area long before Stonehenge was begun. Itʻs fun to imagine the folks using Stonehenge 6,000 years ago gazing at this very comet.

Aah. Perspective! Or maybe I should just say TIME? I grew up, God, reading science fiction. The FUTURE came in so many shapes. It helped open my mind. And, a mind once expanded never goes willingly back into a box.

I used that as an explanation as to why I have such a loose grip on “What is Impossible.” Most folks seem to me to have a very tight grip on what they consider “Possible”…..and all else is “Impossibleʻ. It is very neat and tidy. But, it makes it so difficult to shift from one mental map to another.

Iʻm smiling! Iʻm sounding like a mental shape shifter. Sigh! I wish I were that elastic! Alas, enlarging my mental map — changing to an enlarged perspective on Reality — is slow, hard work.

But, it is work worth doing.

Tagged with: Neowise comet over Stonehenge, reality, Salisbuy Plain
Posted in growing toward up, Growth Opportunities, Perspective, perspectives, reality, the cold snow of reality, the Growth Mindset

Choosing Life

Posted on July 20, 2020 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live. (Deuteronomy 30:19)

Good Evening, God

This verse — spoken by Moses over 3,000 years ago — has been popping up in my heart for many months. WHY?

I see so many situations in which we as a Species seem to be choosing Death. Industrial Agriculture has been killing our soil for generations. It took a book by Vandana Shiva to open my eyes! The incredible number and complexity of microbial life plus earthworms and bugs cannot live in the ongoing baths of herbicides, insecticides, and chemical fertilizer. This dead soil currently is unable to absorb and hold that water and carbon that it was designed to hold.

Sigh. And the runoffs from these toxins are flowing downstream and creating a Dead Zone in the Gulf of Mexico. The dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico isn’t the only dead zone. Although these dead zone are primarily in the summer they have long term effects on the entire area.

But, the Good News is that there ARE things that can be done to reduce the seasonal dead zone. After all, God, I want to focus on LIFE.

Still, I do wonder WHY there is not a more concerted effort to turn privately held farms toward regenerative agriculture — toward LIFE. But, there are signs of hope. The Nature Conservancy seems to be stepping up to the challenge. And I just found a new non-profit called Kiss the Ground which is raising money to transition 5,000 farmers to regenerative agriculture and to train 25,000 leaders!

So, I am feeling better, God! I am seeing hope coming! I am turning my head to look toward Life! And I am pledging a donation to Kiss the Ground!

Tagged with: healthy soil as key to a healthy planet, helping our climate, regenerative agriculture, saving the soil
Posted in a hand up, Abundant Life, an invitation to abundant life, growing toward up, LOVE, The daily details of love, the gift of persistent love, water and love, web of life

Historical Perspective on Pandemics

Posted on July 19, 2020 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Good Day, God

I’ve stumbled upon a fascinating site: The Visual Capitalist. This map of pandemics was eye opening! Let me start with the first one — the Bubonic plagues of 1347 -1351. Two hundred million people died. But, to understand that number I had to find an estimate of the world population at that time. It was estimated to be .35 – .4 billion. This wiped out 30-50% of Europe’s population…taking 200 years to recover.

The 1918 pandemic (the green one) killed 40-50 million people at a time (1900) the world population was 1.56 – 1.71 billion.

The Hong Kong Flu of 1968-70 was estimated to have killed a bit over 1 million people. The population of our planet in 1970 was 3.684 billion.

Today COVID-19 (bottom row, third from left) has killed 602,132 and the population of our planet is 7.794 billion. Now, I realize that our current pandemic is not done. It may reach one million — or not. I surely, pray that it won’t.

But seeing this graphic has certainly made me THINK!

Tagged with: Pandemics in history, past pandemics
Posted in a prayer for healing, complexity, connecting, Expand my Heart, hope, Hope as a gift from God, Perspective, perspectives

Together in Centering Prayer

Posted on July 18, 2020 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Good Evening, God

What an incredible morning — our monthly Morning of Prayer! A gathering via Zoom of people from several islands — Oahu, Hawaii, Maui and Australia. (Anyone who wants more information can go to Contemplative Outreach of Hawaii and sign up for the monthly newsletter and links to ongoing Centering Groups.

Gathering together to sit in silence. Gathering together to sit in Centering Prayer. Gathering together to consent to Your Indwelling Spirits presence and action within us. Actually, one 20 minute period is devoted to Welcoming You.

I was struck, God, by how YOU the omnipresent and all powerful seem to want to be ASKED to come into our very innermost beings. Just as Jesus tells us in Revelations 3:20, “I stand at the door and knock . . “. I never cease to marvel at Your restraint and gentleness. Waiting for us to dimly sense we are missing something essential.

Just a fun aside, I think of the line in My Fair Lady where Alfred P. Doolittle tells the professor, “I’m willing to tell you; I’m wanting to tell you; I’m waiting to tell you.” That feels like what Your Holy Spirit might be saying!

In Centering Prayer each participant is encouraged to pick a “sacred word” — an ordinary word that is deemed sacred because it is a symbol of our intention to consent to the presence and action of Your Indwelling Spirit within us. And, when our minds wander off into fascinating or frightening thoughts, we are encouraged to gently return to the sacred word.

The point isn’t that we wander. The point is that we are welcomed back. It is the inverse of the way we have been raised. We do not lose points for losing focus. We are given points for returning! Of course! Little children learning to walk fall down. The joy is in their getting up and trying again.

Posted in an invitation to abundant life, being together in a compassionate presence, Being With, Belonging to each other, blooming, Centering Prayer, connecting, Prayer, praying, the JOY of praying together

Free Webinar on Mental Health from HIM July 23-25

Posted on July 16, 2020 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

FREE WEBINAR WILL ADDRESS MENTAL HEALTH DURING COVID

Hawaiian Islands Ministries’ Mental Health webinar, July 23, 24, and 25, will offer help for the continuing emotional and mental impact of COVID-19 on our families and community.

The 3-day webinar will feature psychologist Dr. Matt Stanford, CEO of the Hope and Healing Center & Institute in Houston, TX. A panel of mental health professionals will join Dr. Stanford to field questions each day.

Thursday, July 23, 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm
Session 1: Are We Okay? Mental Health and Coping During and After a Pandemic

Friday, July 24, 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm
Session 2: Am I or Someone Dear to Me Depressed?

Saturday, July 25, 9 am to 12 noon
Session 3: Post Traumatic Stress Can Happen to Anyone
Session 4: Learning a New Normal: What We Can Do Now

HIM co-founder Dan Chun says the timing is perfect. “We had scheduled the mental health conference before COVID-19 was even in our vocabulary. Now, it’s an ongoing reality that is not going away. All of us need help.”

This free webinar is open to “anyone who provides help, wants to help or seeks help.” It is appropriate for all ages. For more information and to sign up, go to https://www.himonline.org/mentalhealth

Posted in accepting my need for help, asking for help for myself, healing, health, Help me to see, Humility or Needing Help!

Working on Balance!

Posted on July 15, 2020 by a moment with god — 1 Comment

Good Evening, God

I think, God, that taking good care of ourselves might be one of the biggest challenges we have. It is for me. Our loving daughters do assure me I am making progress. But, I want to do better.

Better? Why better, when I have such a good and, I fear, privileged life? I guess it seems to me that part of the fun of life is seeing if I can’t get the “Balance” just a little bit better. All the while understanding that balancing — such a rich assortment of responsibilities and opportunities — is a privilege. And, now that I think about it, I am not sure what better is — certainly not doing it all!

Just yesterday, I had been thinking I should upgrade my Wife App to include acting as a Physical Therapist for balance issues. But, upon chatting with a friend I realized a good physical therapist requires more authority than is usually available to wives. So, we are seeing our doctor to see about a “prescription” for physical therapy. Correctly ascertaining my limits is an ongoing challenge.

And limits come in many forms. How much of my resources can be shared? Time, money, energy: all of these are limited. More for myself means less for others. Yet, if I fall below a certain level of well being, then functioning in my assorted “roles” takes a hit. No easy answers . . . it is all about continually reassessing the balance. And accepting limits.

But one “investment” that has been helping me is doing two Centering Prayer sits a day. Sitting in silence — with the intention to welcome Your Indwelling Spirit, God — becomes more and more helpful. My soul feels like the soil on Masanobu Fukuoka’s farms. It is becoming healthier and more fertile as I continue.

Tagged with: a fertile soul
Posted in Accepting Imperfection, accepting my authority to set limits, connecting, growing toward up, living within limits, loving limits

Healing the Planet — farm by farm

Posted on July 14, 2020 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Good Evening, God

So here is a key question: if natural farming is sensible and cheaper and easier — why is it not taking over the world? I have four reasons that seem key to me”

MONEY: A switch to Natural Agriculture would mean an immediate economic hit — 10% drop in output for the first year or more. Masanobu Fukuoka said that his land has been getting more fertile every year for over 25 years. Nature does know how to heal and revitalize if we get out of the way. But it would seem to take economic help to begin the transition. And since “everyone” believes that we “need” chemical fertilizer and herbicides and insecticides how would you persuade a bank to give you a loan? Is there a handy billionaire that would like to take this on? Or lots of little folks in a “Go Fund Me?”

2. Know How: Industrial agriculture pumps out endless videos on superior seeds and poisons. They have salesmen making the rounds— how to “salesmen” plus videos. Masanobu Fukuoka is very clear. Nature/reality is very complex. Each plot of ground, each season…different. So it takes watching and learning and that takes enormous reserves of courage and energy.

3. Picky consumers! Unnatural and artificial look “pretty”. Consumers want bright colored fruit that is a pleasant shape. We want it picked early and gassed to give it a bright color and to make it shippable. We want it to look Perfect! Surely, no signs that a bug might have taken a bite.

4. Failure to Understand: We fail to understand the power in natural farming. Soil that has regained its health absorbs more water . . . permits water to drain into the ground and retains water for plant growth. Healthy soil absorbs carbon. It takes carbon out of the air and uses it. When I think of the miles and miles of almost dead soil — soil that could be revitalized and helping to combat global warming — I weep.

Tagged with: Healing our Planet
Posted in connecting

Single-Minded or Natural?

Posted on July 13, 2020 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Masanobu Fukuoka son speaks about his father

Good Evening, God

One thing that struck me in reading The One Straw Revolution was how Masanobu Fukuoka believed that Nature knows what she is doing. How, if we get out of Nature’s way she will rebalance and heal. Indeed, God, he often said that Nature is God and God is Nature. As You seem to be built into the very fabric of Everything . . . I can dimly sense what he meant.

Another idea was that Nature’s complexity can look “random” to us. Mr. Fukuoka seemed almost to laugh at the neatness and tidiness of industrial farming. He shared that that someone told him they had tried the straw covering but it failed. He investigated. And he found that they had placed the straw in an orderly sequence — neatly laying it down in touching rows. He however had strewn his straw, thus leaving room for sprouting, etc.

I just gave a happy sigh. Having been raised in the mechanical era I got the idea that “orderly” was the way things were to be. A place for everything and everything in its place. So there was something freeing . . . liberating even . . . in realizing that a certain amount of “random” is useful.

Actually, God, I am persuaded that “random” is part of a super complex reality. I have noticed that often odd and seemingly unrelated bits of information come together in a pattern as I finally “connect the dots.”

Such Mystery!

Posted in Balancing and adjustments, connecting, Eating for health, healing, health, Random, Rebalancing, Super Complexity, web of life

Overcome Evil with Good

Posted on July 12, 2020 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Good Evening, God!

A dear friend emailed me to say that no-weeding farming might work, but not weeding her garden would be a disaster. And, I have to say that I definitely pull weeds daring to grow in my garden pots.

But, I love the principle of it. Or should I saw that I am struggling to truly understand the principle. Hmm. I think it was St. Paul that said “Overcome evil with good.” That was pretty much Mr. Fukuoka‘s plan. When he started weeds were a problem and he cut them down. He did not poison them, or even uproot them. He just cut them down. Then he sowed clover seeds over the ground to encourage a “good” ground cover. That and covering the plants with straw were his approaches to bringing things into balance.

And, that reminds me of probiotics. Because, surely Your principles are built into every aspect of life. To take an extreme case of a very bad bug in our biome — C.difficile — just a simple squirt of a healthy stool into the infected biome can result in healing. The wide array of bacteria, fungi, and other small nameless creatures in healthy stools were enough to take over the intestinal track and restore it to health.

Perhaps that might work for our human communities too? Oh! To raise up a crop of caring, listening people! People who encourage and strengthen. People who love and forgive and reach out to touch one another.

Tagged with: One Straw Revolution
Posted in a prayer for healing, connecting, growing toward up, Growth Opportunities, Heal Us Now, healing, health, Ongoing Transformation, Rebalancing, the Growth Mindset, Transitions

Do-Nothing Farming – Works

Posted on July 11, 2020 by a moment with god — Leave a comment

Good Evening, God

I’m loving this book — The One-Straw Revolution. I ordered it on a whim . . . part of my new awareness of the importance of traditional agriculture. But, this book takes us way back — well past traditional farming. The author, Mr. Kukuoka, had what seemed like an “enlightenment” in which he knew that we humans know nothing! And out of that grew that idea that crops can grow best if left alone

At the beginning he says, “I acted in the belief that everything should be left to take its natural course, but I found that if you apply this way of thinking all at once, before long things do not go so well. This is abandonment, not ‘natural farming.’ “

What he ended up with was FOUR PRINCIPLES:
NO CULTIVATION — no plowing or turning of the soil
NO CHEMICAL FERTILIZER OR PREPARED COMPOST
NO WEEDING BY TILLAGE OR HERBICIDES
NO DEPENDENCE ON CHEMICALS

Applying these principles, his yields were just as high as with the other modes of farming. But the costs were less and the labor was less. He said that for years people came and investigated and learned. But, no one followed his ways. And one of the reasons he gave struck me powerfully. “The world has become so specialized that it has become impossible for people to grasp anything in its entirety.”

Mr. Fukuoka says that, “I think an understanding of nature lies beyond the reach of human intelligence.” Aah, yes. Our human understanding is limited. We do not understand Nature. We do not understand, You, God. If we loose our grip on those two facts we can all to easily fall into hubris. . . hurtling into the future without taking the time to explore, observe and contemplate.